134 Field Experiments. 



It will be observed that the Ohio and Genoa varieties were subjected to 

 the same severe trial as Federation, and that only a little over 4 per cent, of 

 the plants were affected in each case. It will be remembered that Ohio wheat 

 is one of those varieties which germinates rapidly, and is, therefore, supposed 

 to be less susceptible to bunt on that account, and the result of further ex- 

 periment bears this out. The strain of Genoa was chosen for further trial, 

 because it was absolutely free from Stinking Smut the previous season, and 

 the seed from clean plants of both Ohio and Genoa will be sown the coming 

 season. In both varieties only one plant was bunted and only a single ear in 

 each. 



There are at least two methods for securing bunt-resisting plants, and both 

 lines of investigation are being followed. The one is to cross resistant with 

 non-resistant varieties, and thus secure in the hybrid the desired quality. 

 The other is to select the seed of resistant individuals for propagation, and 

 while the latter is the easier of the two, it is only likely to hold for the locality 

 in which the selection is made ; but in the other the quality, when secured, is 

 likely to be more permanent and independent of its immediate environment. 



Entirely and Partially Bunted Plants. 



As bearing on the amount of loss caused by this smut, it is interesting to 

 inquire whether the ears in affected plants are generally all destroyed or only 

 a portion of them. It has been already shown at p. 78, that smutty and sound 

 ears in the same plant is the general rule, and I had abundant opportunity of 

 verifying this fact during the past season. Taking a plot of Federation wheat 

 as an example, in which every plant grown was bunted, it was found that 

 when infected with Tilletia levis there were seventeen plants entirely and 

 eight only partially bunted, while with T. tritici there were fourteen plants 

 entirely and six partially bunted, or nearly one-third with the stool only 

 partially infected. In some cases therefore there may be even a greater 

 proportion of plants entirely bunted than only partially so. 



Field experiments with Flag Smut {Urocijstis tritici) have already been 

 recorded at p. 98, showing the effects of seed treatment. It is not uncommon 

 to find with this smut that the entire stool has not produced a single ear, as 

 is only too evident to the farmer in his general crop, and the consequent dis- 

 appointing yield in a season when this disease is prevalent. Thus, in a plot of 

 Federation wheat, where infected grain was sown, nearly 17 per cent, of the 

 affected stools were without ears. 



Relative Effects of Bluestone and Formalin on Germination, 

 Infection, and Yield. 



As an object-lesson for farmers, five plots were sown under ordinary 

 farming conditions at Longerenong xlgricultural College with wheat of the 

 variety Jade, which had a little smut with smut-balls scattered through it. 



Each plot was carefully laid out and measured, and contained .776 of 

 an acre. 



The seed was sown at the rate of 50 lbs. per acre, and one lot was treated 

 with bluestone and formalin respectively on 12th March, 1909. Formalin 

 (40 per cent.) was used at the rate of 1 lb. avoirdupois to 40 gallons of water 

 or 1 in 400, and bluestone at the rate of 1 lb. to 5 gallons of water, or a 2 per 

 cent, solution. This was done to test the effect of treating the grain some 

 considerable time before sowing. Another lot was treated similarly on 

 17tli June, and the whole was sown on the 28th of the same month. The 

 earlier treated wheat was left in the bags side by side on the barn floor, with 

 a couple of sticks beneath to prevent their touching the brick floor, and 

 they were still moist at sowing time, but dried before being placed in the 



